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Here's the Porksweats DVDVR Road Report Live From Grand Rapids, MI Did I eat? I actually didn't, I took an adderall this morning to help focus on a big file at work so I was pretty content from some Jamaican Jerk Chicken from my work's bistro. As I've mentioned, I actually live downtown here so the arena was only a few blocks up to walk. I would've gone earlier and attended the meet and greet to see The Acclaimed, Danhausen and Shida but I had to wait for my wife to get out of work (luckily she got out an hour earlier so we could get there to catch the Dark matches!) We got some pretty strong seats, we weren't floor but we were only a few rows up from the floor, eye level with the turnbuckle tops, and only had 2 rows in front so even if there was standing, we were barely obscured. You know what I did eat after all, we both got some draft labatts paying out the ass, seriously they were cheaper in Detroit which is crazy and my wife got a pretzel that I had a few bites from. We did miss the first Dark match because we were checking out the merch, didn't see anything that called our names so we got our seats and sat down as Vickie Guerrero was saying that her stable of Vickie, Nyla and Shafir are the Beast Of Burdens? Seems like she should swap that. We got a Kris Statlander match next, did not catch her opponent's name. She made quick work of her and ended with a big boot but when she did, her other leg buckled and she hobbled back to the back after, I hope she's alright. Justin Roberts hyped the crowd between, asking if we wanted Sonny Kiss, stating they're always listening backstage for who we want and we were all going crazy for it, which leads to Kiss coming out with two other wrestlers I sadly didn't catch the names of either. Their opponents? The Trustbusters! Slim J made us all believers, Parker is great at squashes and Daivari brings the whole thing together. When the match was done, Daivari holds back Parker and Slim J and has a few words with Sonny who wasn't the one eating the pin. Is Sonny joining them? Sure, I'd like that alot. On deck we had Leva Bates/Emi Sakura/Serena Deeb vs Ruby Soho/Athena/Hikaru Shida, my wife instantly declared her favorite in the match to be Sakura, I was just happy we got the return of Leva Bates. Soho easily was the most over. Right team won (Soho/Athena/Shida). After, I got up to use the bathroom but came back in the middle of Uno/Ten vs JD Drake/Peter Avalon, crowd was chanting for Ten. Couldn't tell if it was because of this match or if they really want Shawn Spears to return. Avalon looked like a star. Double helping of JD Drake as he accompanies Anthony Henry against Orange Cassidy, Henry had a pretty combative match and made me realize this was a match I've always wanted. Cassidy wins, we go wild. The Best Friends come down (with Danhausen), and they all hug. Danhausen was in the middle of it very confused. Tony Khan comes out~!!! Says he loves Michigan, thanks the auto industry (also did this same spiel in Detroit), and Ryan Nemeth comes out to interrupt and try to get Ohio over. He doesn't. Tony says he'll remember this. Battle of the Belts - REDACTED (you guys can wait until tomorrow as I don't want to spoil.) Before Rampage, we got both Eddie Kingston with a quick shoutout for the BOTB, he gave the devil his due (gave props to Cesaro), he also thanked us for being there because otherwise who are they busting their asses for? JR gets his entrance. Tony comes back down and does more crowd hyping, Justin Roberts asks if it's possible for us the fans to get Moxley first as there are so many signs, Tony asks the time until Rampage. 1 Minute to go, Tony says we'll see in 60 seconds won't we. Didnt expect Moxley to come down through the crowd from up top, but was pleasantly surprised when he walked by my section on the floor on the initial approach. Crowd was hot, Ol' Mancer came down next. Alot of people in my section were pulling for him. I'm surprised we had so much energy for it considering how BOTB ended, but I loved every minute of it. Mance's first chop you could hear anywhere in the arena, truly earthshattering and I can only imagine how it came across on TV. Nemeth comes back down and starts insulting Michigan again, then TAKESHITA COMES DOWN and lays waste. Brief Wheres Dolph Ziggler chant, I'd love to see Dolph/Takeshita. We got to see the clip from last week with Orange backstage, GR loves Danhausen. Up next Rayne/Grey. We cheered Rayne, booed Grey, then just got really fucking bored. You can definitely tell Grey came from OVW. Chants that broke out during the match: Armbar, Fight Forever/Please Don't. Never heard a crowd breathe a bigger sigh of relief for a finish, and thank god Jade came down. Will the Rayne/Jade match be any good? I can definitely say it's going to be better than this. Main Event, most of this match was watched on the screens as the action took place on the opposite side of the ring where we were sitting. Tony Nese rocks, I'm so glad I got to have him main event a show I went to. He's a natural in that end of 10 O'Clock hour with countless 205 Lives under his belt. Epilogue: Blood and Guts was a better AEW experience, but I definitely got the Van Andel arena figured out now going forward, the arena was mostly packed. Only real empty spots were by the section where the camera was. I did have to have some words with a guy with a sign though, he wasnt blocking me but our section was hard cam side but to the right out of frame, so we were rarely if ever in shot and he kept holding up a sign trying to get on Botchamania. I didn't really care about that but every time he put it up, I had a guy directly behind me bitching but not saying anything and a dude behind him yelling constantly about him and it was just bringing the vibe down, so I told the sign guy to look at the screen and notice we are totally not on camera and all he's doing is making everyone else around him fucking hate him. I felt bad but then he kept shittalking Tony Nese during the main event so like, thats his prerogative All in all, great time was had. It's nice to be home.

Fixed that for you.

Our view.

I don't have a ton of thoughts about Mance vs Mox. It feels like a good entry into Mox's 2022, just another match on the list. Mance kind of comes off as the Rock'n'Roll RPMs of tough guys, the sort that could have a great run in Puerto Rico or be the center of a tag team division in Central States, good hand, nice variety to see once or twice, but.. What stood out the most was how Mox chained together offense and violence in the last couple of minutes. That was just nuts and really defines who and what he is, right down to having to switch the arm. I do wonder if this match was about protecting him going into a loss on Weds? I am the lowest guy on the board on Takeshita but I appreciate how genuine he comes off as and how he appreciated the fans here. And it's not like his stuff doesn't look good and impactful. It's just the pacing. I'm glad he got to have a moment like that even if he's not my guy. Grey vs Rayne was tough. Let's talk about the chinlock. That's what drew the first puppies chant I've heard in years. The problem was threefold. First, the fans haven't built up emotional attachment to Grey or Rayne yet. If it was Athena or Ruby working from underneath and even Hogan or Velvet on top, it would have been fine. Grey did a good job working the crowd throughout it and it didn't matter. Second, she came into it too soon. They had to wait until the commercial break was over to come out of it and if they had gone into it even a few seconds later, it would have helped. Third, people suck, right? I did love Stoke grooving to Grey's entrance music. The main definitely overdelivered. 2022 Tony Nese is the world's best possible Seth Rollins. He understands where he belongs on a card, how his athletic ability an execution best helps the company, and does what he's supposed to do in order to get things over and be entertaining instead of just trying to spam great workrate matches or whatever. If I'm going to watch guy with abs do an overwrought laugh, I definitely want it to be Nese. The story was smart as it was all about keeping Lee out of the match, right until they weren't able to anymore. Sterling goes through all the motions and does it correctly but doesn't have the spark of brilliance. I bet if Stoke was in there, after the wrench shot (which came right after the "Whose House?" bit, he would have done a "Whose Wrench?" thing and it would have been awesome. Basically, he shows up and does his job and is effective, but isn't transcendent. Woods looked like a beast at the end with that German, and Keith looked like a beast in blocking it for so long. Win win (unless you're the table). This is the best environment for Swerve where all of his goofy stuff can just fit into the chaos. AEW is smart in not doing street fights more than every few months because they don't feel overdone and almost always deliver.

Blackpool Cinnabon Club

Oh no! NOW TACO BELL!

The trauma of being involved in the WrestleRock Rumble strongly influenced young Curt Hennig's muslcal tastes.

Don’t know where else to put this, but it’s struck me a few times that Austin Gunn is a Memphis Wrestler trapped in 2020’s wrestling. His look size and wrestling style would fit right in with Lawler, Dundee, Jarrett, Brian Christopher et al. I’ve loved the Gunn Club v Acclaimed feud.

Well said, Nese haters take note. Also a good read for those who bellyache about wrestlers in similar roles being 'dead' or whatever (Kazarian comes to mind).

Wonder if it was part of Warrior's lawsuits against Vince? I don't recall a single show in Parts Unknown, let alone Warrior getting a big win there.

Soup needs an AEW-produced YouTube show where he visits all the fast food joints. It would rule. Mance Warner will punch a motherfucker right in the face. Swerve tried to kill a man with a toolbox. A good hour of professional wrestling.

To show that he's really in charge now, HHH should make some big dramatic symbolic gesture. Like, maybe, come out with his sledgehammer and bust up a big prop throne or something. I don't think that's ever happened before.

I almost hesitate to say this because there are lots of opinions, including my own, that probably don't need to be re-litigated at this point in time, but holy shit if that doesn't describe the latter half of Cody's AEW tenure to a tee.

Predictable results (was really hoping for a “shock” Hayter win) but amazing wrestling tonight. Lethal really got me when he collapsed in the ring, that was some fucking food selling/acting from him, I really though his knee was messed up. Main event was a proper MOTYC, I was 99.99% sure Claudio was winning but I really bit on a couple of near falls from Takeshita, specially the Knee/Brainbuster combo and the Helluva Kick/Blue Thunder Bomb. I love how El Generico is part of the AEW / Indy lore in this universe.

That would work. He is Acey Romero sized.

Why is Cross-Raynes such hilarity to me!? William Regal may be the first wrestler I can remember thinking - I could have a nice roadtrip listening to music with this gentleman. Between his love for two tone and northern soul he fires off a random Moz reference He 'bear(s) more grudges than lonely high court judges'. Speaking of commentary, further hilarity, as JR tells the audience during Mance/Mox 'they know how to fall' which unfortunately for Jim sounds like he's telling the fans 'wrestling, it's all fake' than his intended and completely fucking unnecessary sarcasm. Ol' Mancer looked like he was a bit too cautious with the company champion on those clotheslines and such, but fun bout nontheless. Considering they gave him promo time (a bit awkward to cut to shots of Mox in ring without the live sound) I would think he's gonna be around for the long haul. He's the new and improved Jimmy Havoc! So much laughter on one show - that great Sterling spot - Macho elbow indeed! Smart Mark's having a great week. Josh Woods needs some fine tuning, but he's looking better and better. This is JR's first look at Woods because of course he doesn't watch any of the product. I think the most exciting thing of all was how over Takeshita's gotten with the AEW crowd. Cannot wait for the Claudio match! Only a Briscoes-FTR bout could equal this kind of anticipation of thrills. BOTB3 is surely the strongest yet. And thanks for posting the old (I slept upon them in the green era) Road Reports @DEAN@Curt McGirt. And well done with this new one @porksweats! Something to consider for my local TO shows.

Steiners vs Dragon Robes, suggested by @Curt McGirt First thing I want to highlight is the beauty of the arena set up. Is that two entrance ramps opposite of each other? As a fan in the area, I can more likely see my heroes potentially walk by? I love this and could see this being something reattempted in the future. My former governor of course is wrong on who always starts up the match. You goofball. Speaking of goofballs, Terry Gordy should never try to start a match with a double leg takedown on a man in a singlet and headgear. It’ll never work. I’m loving how this starts out. Rick will have the advantage on the body positioning and regularly re-maintaining control through lock ups. All while the young Scott is excitedly pacing back and forth on the apron. Apron character work, when done right, can add to a match. Gordy gets leg control but can’t successfully take the dogface down. So he pops him in the face. Three of the characters involved are now defined. Rick gains control by the wonders of grappling and tags in Scott. Scott and Gordy press up against each other. Just like with Rick, but now the goal is for completing a suplex instead of sheer body control. Terry gets his arms hooked under Scott’s and can gain an advantage to flip Steiner over him. What happens next is a great display of struggle. Scott stays with his arms clasped around Terry’s waste. A pin attempt is stopped with Steiner arching upward. Normally, the goal is to completely arch to a turning and standing position. But whether it is a botch or Gordy asserting dominance, we witness multiple attempts to rise and Gordy putting his weight downward. Pin attempts and back arching. Intentional or not, Scott comes across like a young Spider-Man struggling to lift debris and heavy steel beams off of himself. The full pages of sweating and pain, when this normally little moment happens it feels so much bigger and earned. And after all this, explosive Scott shifts his body and performs a tossing single leg takedown over his head. The crowd erupts. It wasn’t just the move but the fact that he fought to pull it off. Then it happens. The sound of Jim Ross’s hog smashing against the bottom of the announcers table as Doctor Death tags in. Suplex guy vs Suplex guy. Amateur wrestler style circling each other and reaching in to try and find an opportunity to get the opponent to make a premature jump. There is an old tale of the Mongoose vs the Snake. The Mongoose continuously pummels and hopes to beat the head of the Snake mercilessly until victorious. The Snake attempts to dodge and weave waiting for the moment to strike with a venomous bite. These two mother fuckers are Snakes. Quickly circling each other, waiting for the moment to fuck the other up. Wrestling. Fuck yeah, wrestling. Two big dudes then do some awesome freestyle wrestling. “Jockeying for position” moans a sweaty Jim Ross as he continuously throws praise towards Steve Williams. I enjoy struggle. I recently watched a few Daisuke Sekimoto matches. His fight is slow and pressing of ham and slapping of chests. This is a quicker fight of two goats raging their horns against each other to get the other off balance enough to achieve an opportunity for an explosive blow, all to the excitement of the Oklahoman farmer doing his best the hold onto his milk pale with his sweaty hands. Pretty evenly matched, even when Scott manages to get behind Williams, he is lifted up and neutralized until they both reach the ropes. Stand off. The Death Doctor is irritated by how long the rope break release took so both teams in the ring in a standoff. Rick gets tagged in during the next grappling sequence and HOT DOG RICK EASILY BELLY TO BELLYS STEVE. Steve Williams rolls out the ring. Good guys in the ring posing (Rick Steiner is a dog) while the heels are outside being mad they were one upped. Jim Ross then uses this moment to again mention his affection of Steve and how we all need to pay attention to the strategy of Doctor Death. He talks about how Scott is an emotional young man and needs to watch out for the smarts and handsomeness of Williams. Even though it is Rick in the ring. Ross is full on late-90’s Lawler with his admiration of puppies. But it isn’t towards the actual dog (Rick) but the glistening hardened pecks of Doctor Death. I’m loving the freestyle wrestling style approach here. Both men are throwing their weight together quickly and trying get an advantage of the other. Rick is the clear superior fighter here, but Doc does a disrespectful hand push to Steiner’s face. Rick say, “nuh uh” and didn’t like that. By the power of rage, Rick Steiner’s grappling is now unstoppable. He over-powers Doc and pummels him. Rick is now punching! Williams meekly turns him over and gains a rest hold on Rick’s back. Forearms him in the face for good measure. They get up and Doc takes the moment to throw a big lariat. In this Act we see how the characters are progressing through this battle. Up to this point, Rick is the top wrestler. Doc is just under him, but will get a tad disrespectful to get in his opponents head for an advantage. Scott is the young stud athlete that can toss you if you’re not careful and Terry will use his weight and punch your face. Dogface is in trouble and Terry is tagged in and likes punching faces. Gordy vs Rick in a slugfest, Gordy will win. He’s in control until a poor decision to lock up for a belly to belly attempt, Rick will win that battle. Hot tag to a feisty Scott. Beating them both up. Scott is in control until his youth leads him to trying too much too fast and a failed drop kick leads to a STF to slow him down. Doc tags in and beats the poor Steiner up. Steiner is the victim to tag team moves and a good old fashioned beating. Gordy/Death control segment until another classic hot tag. Now we get Rick Steiner’s revenge. Good wrestling is filled with storied parallel moments. Rick Steiner clotheslines Doc over the top rope and comes out ahead in a slugfest with Terry. Rick goes for the victory but the ref can’t count because he never saw the tag. Uhhhhh oh. Scott is still derped up and is getting beat up by Gordy in the outside. Wild fun as Rick and Terry are fighting and Doc charges Scott with a shoulder tackle to the knee. Ending segment is pretty sweet. Doc vs Scott. Williams presses Steiner above his head and catches him into a power slam. Scott kicks out. We’re getting a comeback. Rick is stopping Gordy from shenanigans but that catches the ref’s eye. Terry shenanigans stops a belly to belly and shoulder tackles Scott’s knee to stop a comeback. Williams gets the pin. I’ll file this match under fun. I really enjoyed the wrestling style and would love to see more of them all go at it again. Exciting action and each character filled their role well. The story could have been more conscientious or tuned in, but I don’t know if that would automatically make it better. This seemed like a realistic bout and played out the way it should. Good guys lose but look strong, while the villains still come across like killers. —— Awesome, thanks @Web Conn. I’ll try and watch that tomorrow or Sunday.

The only thing I will say about this and my experience at the show before it airs is that the TNT match opens. And Platinum Satnam rocks.

That was beautiful, @porksweats

Takeshita for BCC. Give him all the Cinnabon he wants…

Maybe his best Blue Thunder Bomb.

MONCE! Versus MOX! And there will be blood in... huh! I guess they are holding off. This is fun! WHO WILL BLEED FIRST?!? MOX TAKES A DDT ON THE STEEL STEPS! Annnnd Mox isn't bleeding yet. I await the INTERNATIONAL FEED tomorrow. They are still wrestling. MONCE IS FIRST TO BLEED! THAT is a LOT of blood. Mance Warner succumbs to a Bulldog Choke! I'm guessing there will be BLOOD in the street fight so Mox didn't blade? Nick Comoroto is unrecognizable when wearing a hat. I'm guessing Konosuke Takeshita wrestled AFTER wrestling Claudio? Unless they are taping battle of the belts AFTER this which would be insane. But JR was talking like he had already seen the match. Either way, MORE CINNEBOMB! YES! PRETTY PETER AVALON- THE PRETTIEST BOY IN AEW! Gets CRUSHED by a flying knee! It's kind of strange to basically have Madison Rayne and Leila Grey debut on Rampage. Madison Rayne looks perfectly fine and Leila Grey looked perfectly fine. Stokely Hathaway was great. Grey looks great in picture on picture beating the hell out of Madison. That was pretty good in that they took it home before the crowd went from tepid tolerance to completely turning on it. Grey only looked lost once. Rayne looked better than she ever did on IMPACT! I assume she is getting mauled Wednesday and Athena saves her bacon. Josh Woods looks great in this street fight. Fun things are happenng in picture in picture. This match has become a wreck and I think I love it. GREAT DOUBLE TABLE SPOT with KEITH LEE AND JOSH WOODS! That was fucking great. Smart Mark Sterling ALMOST took the craziest bump of the match but it does help seal his fate as the new Bobby Heenan. That main event was WAAAAAY better than I thought it would be. Shane Strickland is a treasure. Odd episode but it had a lot of good wrestling. It was strange to introduce so many wrestlers- MONCE, Leila Gray, Madison Rayne and Josh Woods- on a national stage all at once. Either way, the matches were good and we got a extra dollop of Takeshita. Overall, I declare this a successful episode. AEW RULES THE ENTIRE MOTHERFUCKING WORLD.

ROAD REPORT - NOW UN-REDACTED BATTLE OF THE BELTS EDITION I was glad to see my prediction of the match order was right, I didnt think they'd start with the womens and I knew TNT wasn't main eventing. Platinum Satnam is even bigger in person, second time seeing him it's just as crazy. Lethal has been studying his Zbyszko tapes with all that stalling. Wardlow rolling into that first powerbomb opportunity had the kid behind me screech with excitement and blow my eardrums out but you know what, it was really cool. Glad it only took one powerbomb to drop Lethal. Also glad we got a tease of a Platinum Powerbomb rather than busting it out now. Match should've been shorter and less competitive if they were ending with the post match beatdown. Women's match. We really wanted Hayter to win. She really brought her a-game and Britt did some great stooging. If Rebel (Not Reba) was a better wrestler, they'd be Lady Freebirds. I'm really over Rosa's reign here because this was the perfect chance to hotshot it. Main Event Time, despite the deflating Rosa win, we kept the energy up for Claudio/Takeshita. I was on the edge of my seat the whole match but felt it was a sure Claudio win until Takeshita's Ricola Bomb reversal, I've never been so worked by a match in my life. Both men brought their absolute best and I think it might've been the best ROH title match I've seen in person (even better than Danielson's win over Gibson).

Sorry I'm late! Got a late start on the Xfinity race and the wife had to watch that punk, Ty Gibbs, get the checkered flag. THEN at 8:15, I realized that BOTB wasn't recording! So I missed the Wardlow/Lethal match. I did see the highlights of BEATDOWN! Looked like fun. JAMIE HAYTER! Is prolly losing to Thunder Rosa! Hayter attacks EARLY and Britt Baker DMD CHEATS! Baker is great at ringside. Hayter is beating the crap out of Thunder for a while. Thunder counters a SNAP Suplex on the floor with a DDT. Baker distracts Thunder Rosa and she bumps BIG to the floor. GAAH! Picture in picture! Rosa is just taking an ass beating to the delight of everyone on the Death Valley Driver Video Review Message Board. I am delighted because I dig Jamie Hayter on offense, not because I don't love Thunder Rosa. I love Thunder Rosa and I think she gets a lot of shit from internet rubes. Emi Sakura was talking about Thunder Rosa after the Miyu Yamashita match in that Thunder Rosa doesn't try to get over her own style in a match but tries to match the strength of her opponent- thus you had Rosa trading kicks with the best kicker in Tokyo Joshi Pro. Emi said that's why Rosa doesn't ever look as good as her opponent. Here, she will try to match stiffness with the stiffest worker in the Women's division. Rosa hits the Sarray Through the Ropes Dropkick. Crossbody for TWO! SWEET FUCKING BRAINBUSTER by Hayter! For TWO! Britt Baker grabs Rosa around the head while Hayter distracts the ref, making Toni Storm fend off Baker! Baker hits a great Superkick. Storm hits a DDT to the floor! Hayter is distracted by the shenanigans on the floor and Rosa does a series of roll-ups until finally pinning Hayter. That was good. Rosa is good selling a beating as a sympathetic babyface. Hayter is fucking awesome beating a mountain of heat onto a babyface. That was good. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA! CLAUDIO CASTIGNOLI! PRESENT BLACKPOOL COMBAT CLUB! FUTURE BLACKPOOL COMBAT CLUB! Oh man, this match is fucking awesome. They are going long and the crowd is going along with every step of the way. Claudio works the back and Takeshita sells it like a champ. Great Vertical Suplex by Claudio in picture in picture. Oh man, I can't wait for the INTERNATIONAL FEED to hear Regal go on about Claudio working on Takeshita. Takeshita hits an EVEREST VERTICAL SUPLEX while we await the little screen to become a big screen. Takeshita comes back with a Flying Lariat and then hits a Tope Con Hilo! MAGNIFICENT EVEREST GUTWRENCH SUPLEX TOPROPE! A GIANT SWING! Takeshita comes back with a BLUE THUNDER BOMB! Excalibur notes that Takeshita has a CINNABOMB! GREAT FUCKING NEARFALL after German Suplex and a Lariat and A GREAT LARIAT by TAKESHITA! Takeshita sells the Claudio Lariat like a fucking KING. KNEE STRIKE AND A FUCKING AWWWESOME BRAINBUSTER! For TWO! FUCKING GREAT NEARFALL ON A COUNTER TO A RICOLLA BOMB! DEATH VALLEY DRIVER BY CLAUDIO! This match is fucking GREAT. RICOLLA BOMB FOR THE WIN! That match was fucking GREAT. FUCKING GREAT. AEW RULES THE MOTHERFUCKING WORLD.

That was a whole lot of really good pro wrestling, capped by a great NOAH-style main event. I understand it's not everyone's cup of tea, but oh boy am I personally ever delighted to see that kind of pro wrestling on American TV in 2022. It's fun. (Skip-able side rant: It's too bad, in my opinion, that a lot of my internet friends -and others- have convinced themselves that no-selling pop-up, hit a move, then collapse sequences and you-hit-me, I-hit-you fighting spirit strike exchanges are by definition bad pro wrestling. That is less incorrect than the take that it is by definition great pro wrestling, but still... When it's done as well as it was here, it really can be pretty great). I LOVE how everyone in BCC uses hammer and anvil elbows to set up their finishers now. Love it. LOVE the El Generico shout out followed by the "Hell of a kick!" call. Nice Easter egg for us wrestling nerds! We appreciate it. The Cinnabomb! Nice old fashioned struggle over a vertical suplex during the pitcher in pitcher. Loved that match. It's gonna run away with DEAN's poll. Zero percent chance of it making Phil's Ringer list. Wardlow looks even bigger. F#@&'s sake. Maybe he leaned out a bit, and it makes his giant pecs, lats, and traps stand out even more? Nice tease of the powerbomb on Satnam. Sets up the next logical step for Wardlow very nicely. Hayter? No, man. We all love her. I get the sense that the roof would have blown off the building if she'd won. Hell of a match. It was very hard hitting indeed, but... Come on, Taz! Have you never seen Hokuto vs Kandori? Kong vs Kansai? Devil Masami? What a great time to be a pro wrestling nerd this is!

Danhausen, greeting a local fan

If I had a wrestling school, I'd paint this on the wall like suburban assholes do with "Live Laugh Love". That guy sucks out loud. I have zero idea how that low-rent horseshit got to be such a big deal.

Are YOU willing to go to Kensuke Sasaki's house and risk being beat up by his wife? That's some balls on Suwamurrrr.

The main event was really good. Mark Sterling its quickly turning into one of my favorites. Old school heel manager, almost a throw back to the WWE 80s/90s. I would love to see him in a more prominent role.

Mance is a great promo. He has a solid look / character and knows how to play it. But then the bell rings. And he's not very good. I am shocked no one has commented on his punches, since this is DVDR after all lol. They were terrible. Slow motion. No snap. Mox noticed too, as he started jamming his face into the punches, the only way he got any contact out of them. I hope he isn't under contract. He'd jump the line for me become their worst signing.

If I haven’t said this before, Thunder Rosa needs to take Soup to this restaurant in San Antonio that makes 3.5 pound cinnamon rolls. It was on Man vs Food. I just looked and while the original restaurant closed there is a bakery (owned by the son of the restaurant owner) that makes them.

Don't forget to make a note to set your DVR SPECIALLY. ITS NOT A RAMPAGE OR A DYNAMITE!

Cheers, @porksweats. Glad you had a great time.

Yeah, Takeshita should always do the knee like that. The jumping one can look pretty light, that one was murderous.

I love you.

That main event was fucking awesome. We're sleeping on how good Tony Nese's theme is. Big believer in Nese now.

Nick Khan's budget cuts to HHH:

Oooh, you lucky sumbitch! You saw Takeshita/Claudio live!

y'all can probably guess how I feel about Leonard Marshall then

Dusty and Magnum were drippin' back in 85

Personally I was with Tim Dog and Kool Keith, I wasn't havin' it with that polka dot shit...

Oh man, how about Cobb versus Ryota Hama? Now there's a name unheard in awhile.

Yeah, all the people talking about how HHH is going to get Kross “right” after what Vince did to him must have memory holed his NXT run, in which HHH failed spectacularly at getting him over as a top guy. One of the only times I can think of, maybe besides Bo Dallas, where the NXT fan base just abjectly refused to buy who HHH was selling on top. As washed as Vince was by the end, I think it’s fair to say he accurately assessed that Kross was a big zero.

Yeah, looks more vicious.

The Pentagon match above is IMO the definitive Callihan match, his best work and that event is the peak of a great Impact era. Elsewhere in Impact, he has various good matches with Eddie Edwards in 2018-19, really liked his match with Rich Swann at Rebellion 2019, enjoyed his work with Brian Cage (BFG 2019 and steel cage rematch).

Okay, maybe I was wrong and the new Beavis and Butthead is funny: